Poland Votes to Exit Landmine Treaty
(MENAFN) Polish legislators have passed a contentious proposal to exit an international accord that bans the use and accumulation of anti-personnel landmines, triggering strong condemnation from human rights advocates and Nobel Peace Prize winners.
The Sejm, which is Poland's lower chamber of parliament, approved the bill on Wednesday evening by a significant margin.
According to a state-run broadcaster, 413 members voted in support, 15 opposed, and three refrained from voting.
This measure enables Poland to begin the process of withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention, a major treaty established in 1997 in Canada and ratified by Warsaw in 2012.
Defending the decision, Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz argued it was vital for the country’s military preparedness.
“Poland must not be put in a straitjacket that prevents the defense of our homeland,” he stated.
The decision follows similar discussions in nearby countries such as Finland and the Baltic states, which are also contemplating leaving the treaty due to escalating regional security threats after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Though formally exiting the treaty necessitates notifying the United Nations, these neighboring countries have already initiated or concluded the necessary legislative steps.
The Ottawa Convention—officially termed the Mine Ban Treaty—prohibits the deployment, storage, manufacture, and distribution of anti-personnel mines, citing their severe and often indiscriminate toll on civilian populations.
In response, a coalition of 100 Nobel laureates, among them ex-Polish President Lech Walesa, released a collective appeal this week, imploring Poland and neighboring governments to reverse course.
They described landmines as “relics of a bygone era” that “kill and maim indiscriminately.”
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